special edition of "way too early"n this monday, october 22nd. i'm willie geist. we are live for the next two days from rack in boca raton, florida. let me anticipate your clever tweets. rack is owned by a man named gary rack. no, it's he not a hooters knockoff. we can all move along together. along with these brave souls here who are joining me at this ungodly hour, a big night in boca. just 15 days out from the big day. florida and its 29 electoral votes critical for this election as they always are. we've got some new nbc wall street journal polling that captures the air tight state of this race. we will talk live in a moment to the head of the council on foreign relations, richard hoff, about what he'd like answered. we begin life at 5:30 a.m. boca time where the polls stand 15 days until the votes are cast. the new nbc wall street journal poll has this race dead even

among likely voters. 47-47. before the debate season began in early september, the president held a five point lead. among women voters the president's lead shrinking down to eight points. the smallest lead he's had with women all year in this nbc poll. among men, mitt romney holds a ten point advantage. when asked which candidate is better prepared to create jobs and improve the economy, the mitt romney has an edge. when asked what the nation's economy will look like over the next 12 months, only 9% believe it will get worse. that's the lowest number that's been reported in decades. when it comes to the direction of the country, 41 percent perfection say we're on the right track. that's the highest number the poll has recorded in three years. tonight's debate is moderated by bob schieffer.

they see this as the last chance to move the needle in any significant way in the swing states. there is genuine concern within the campaign that swing voters with whom romney needs to connect have little interest in foreign affairs. nevertheless, iran will certainly be a big topic. "the new york times" over the weekend reported that the united states and tehran have agreed in principle to engage in one on one negotiations over iran's programs. they cite anonymous sources within the administration says the talks would take place after the presidential elections. the white house says that report is not true. yesterday on "meet the press" mitt romney's sparring partner and debate prep rob portman said that's another example of a national security breech within the obama administration. >> another example of a national security leak from the white house. the other thing that's interesting about this story if it's accurate is it sounds like the u.s. is taking a position

that we're likely to jettison our allies. the last thing we want to do is abandon our allies and make it a one-on-one negotiation. some of the allies have been more forward leaning than we have been to make sure the sanctions are tough and put in place. >> owe bomb me's campaign senior advisor, david axlerod, had a different view of the situation in iraq. >> there's a tremendous disquiet in iran. their currency has dropped in value by 50%. their oil business has dropped by 50%. there's resttiveness in the political environment there and they're feeling the heat. that's what the sanctions were meant to do. remember, when he came to office we were isolated on our position on iran and in the world and today the world is unified against iran with us all because of the leadership of this president. >> and we're getting some new details this morning about the confusion within the obama administration following the attack on the u.s. consulate in

benz, libya, that killed four americans. "the wall street journal" reports that cia told president obama for more than a week after the attack that the assault was the result of a spontaneous protest. that's from the cia. according to the president's brief, they say it was not adjusted until the 22nd. they disputed the accuracy of the cia's initial finding. the romney campaign has been critical of the president's handling and the confusion over what triggered that attack on september 11th in benghazi. joining me to talk about all of this in boca, richard hoff. >> good to see you. >> up awfully early this morning with me. >> i noticed that. >> let's start with libya. what's at the core for this issue? this has been going on for a month. this is a back and forth. this is incompetence out of the

white house or misrepresentation of the facts. >> it has been the latter. i think with this most recent report that begins to fade. you can look at the basic decision not to provide the information. then you look at the question of how the white house responded and why people couldn't get their stories straight. that will fade. ultimately, the question is the policy. what the united states has done in libya and what we haven't done. >> it's reported in "the new york times" over the weekend about iran. how significant is this? the white house is shooting down the report. they cite a couple of obama officials and say we'll sit down one-on-one with bilateral talks. >> i hope they do sit down. we can coordinate with our allies. we should not want to rush to war. if we have to go to war, fine. no one should under estimate the potential risks and dangers. on the other hand, we don't want to see them with a nuclear weapon. this could give us a chance to negotiate out of this impasse.

if we learn they are willing to pursue a nuclear weapon, that tells us something. that's clarity. we can make some informed choices. >> what kind of position does this put mitt romney in? he said before he doesn't want iran to have any nuclear enrichment program whatsoever. what does this do to his position? >> i think it's a difficult case for the governor because the governor could become president. he doesn't want to say things that lock himself in. i think we want to say we want to arrive at minimal capabilities. seshlly nothing close to nuclear weapons. establish the principle that whatever level iran can have, it has to be accompanied by truly intrusive inspections. we need to know what they're up to and what they're not up to. that's the approach i would take. >> as one of the foreign policy leaders in this country, what's one of the questions you want to hear tonight. >> the biggest foreign policy investments over the last 10 to 15 years have been iraq and afghanistan. i think one of the questions to

ask is what have you learned? what sort of lessons have you learned as we look at the middle east, what have you taken from iraq, from afghanistan, how would that influence you moving forward. >> richard haass, we appreciate you waking up. what do you do with them? >> i think florida is in his future. >> he might be. richard haass, we'll see you in a few minutes. following tonight's debate, they say the president will debate in a two day around the clock battleground blitz. it starts in iowa, denver, late night event in las vegas. the same night the president will take the red eye to tampa and they had up to richmond, virginia, followed by a stop in chicago where he will officially cast his early ballot. they'll wrap up with a grassroots event in cleveland, ohio, where over the weekend the president received the endorsement of the cleveland plain dealer. the endorsement comes with less

enthusiasm and optimism than in 2008. however, another newspaper, the columbus dispatch, is siding with romney. his real world experience to lead the nation on the economic recovery. they kept a low profile over the weekend. president obama was hunkered down at camp david, mitt romney took a short break in dell ray beach to watch some flag football between his staff and the members of the media who cover him. governor romney presided over the coin toss and his wife ann took care of some business on the field as you see in this photograph released by the campaign. they say that is a touchdown pass looking deep for somebody up the sideline. if you're keeping score at home, this ended in a 14-14 tie. former democratic candidate george mcgovern has died. he was known as a champion for the civil rights movement and against the vietnam war. first as a senator in south dakota and later as the

democratic nominee for president in 1972. he lost the race badly earning just 17 electoral votes to richard nixon's 520 carrying massachusetts and the district of columbia. he was beloved by republicans including his lifelong friend senator bob dole. dole wrote in the washington post, in the recent years george and i had several occasions to get together and reflect on our lives, our political careers and our respective presidential campaigns. no matter how many times we replayed it, he never defeated president nixon. the greatest of life's blessings can't be counted in electoral votes. america and the world are better because of him. that's from bob dole in the washington post. george mcgovern was 90 years old. still ahead this morning, when we return to boca raton, redskins rookie quarterback robert griffin iii again showing

he's the real deal giving the skins the late lead but he gave eli a little time. too much? we'll see the highlights from all the weekend's tight games. plus, snl relives last week's presidential debate. a cameo appearance from one of hollywood's biggest stars. that and more when we come back to rack in boca raton. the shaw's charter jet arrived in new york's la gard yeah jet. he was taken to new york's hospital on manhattan's upper east side. a spokeswoman for the family would confirm that he is undergoing tests. ♪

want my recipe for healthier hair color? natural instincts!

formulated with aloe, vitamin and antioxidants natural instincts has a system that's a healthier way to radiant color. indulge... with natural instincts. less guilt, more gorgeous. progresso. in what world do potatoes, bacon and cheese add up to 100 calories? your world. ♪ [ whispers ] real bacon... creamy cheese... 100 calories... [ chef ] ma'am [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. military families face, we understand.

at usaa, we know military life is different. we've been there. that's why every bit of financial advice we offer is geared specifically to current and former military members and their families. [ laughs ] dad! dad! [ applause ] ♪ [ male announcer ] life brings obstacles. usaa brings advice. call or visit us online. we're ready to help. boring. boring. [ jack ] after lauren broke up with me, i went to the citi private pass page and decided to be...not boring. that's how i met marilyn... giada... really good. yes! [ jack ] ...and alicia. ♪ this girl is on fire [ male announcer ] use any citi® card to get the benefits of private pass. more concerts. more events. more experiences. [ jack ] hey, who's boring now? [ male announcer ] get more access with a citi card. [ crowd cheering, mouse clicks ]

welcome back to boca raton. we are live this week, today and tomorrow, at racks eatery. it's 5:43 in the morning for heavens sake. they are lined up outside. beautiful here as you might expect. let's get a check on your weather from nbc's meteorologist bill karins who is up in new york. >> wow, willie, very impressive stuff at racks. as far as the crowd goes outside today in florida, it will be very warm. already warm there. florida's not alone of the the rest of the country is extremely warm. pretty dry morning. only our friends out in the west are dealing with nasty weather. a lot of rain in california today. snow in the high elevations of places here especially around tahoe and central sierras. san francisco, sacramento, minor problems with rain. kind of the first rainstorm of the season for that area.

the big story, the warm air dominates the weather map from denver all the way to the east coast. the changes will come towards the end of the week on friday. that's when cold air will come down from canada. for today, enjoy a beautiful, quiet day. the leaves are at peak. gorgeous afternoon this afternoon in areas of new england. florida will be in the 80s today and a few showers in the midwest. willie, we're off to a very mild, mild fall and it's going to continue until friday. that's when the big change arrives. all right, bill. we will take it. good weather down here. thanks so much. turn to sports. we start with baseball. nlcs, game six. san francisco at home facing elimination for the second straight game. refusing to go away. top of the second, giants already up 1-0. runners on the corners. the pitcher, ryan vogelsong, he cannot get the handle. everybody is safe. giants up 2-0 on that aerror. with two or two out marco

scutaro drives one nooth corner. both runners score. giants up 4-0 at that point. only in the second inning. fourth inning, vogelsong cruising. vogelsong struck out nine in seven innings of work. giants cruz to a 6-1 win. they've forced a decisive win. they were down 3-1. they have one game to head to the world series. kyle lohse against matt cain. a trip to the world series hangs in the balance. to the football games, bengals hosted the steelers on nbc. fourth quarter, score tied 17-17. chris rainey takes the handoff. 11-yard touchdown. that's the difference. steelers win this 24-17 on the road. they're 3-3. the bengals fall to 3-4. giants hosting rg3 and the redskins. what a game. fourth quarter. redskins down 4. 2:00 to go. going for it on fourth and ten.

watch griffin elude would-be tacklers. fourth down. a 19-yard gain. that keeps the drive alive. redskins keep it going with a chance to take the lead. three plays later griffin looking deep for santana moss. hits him in stride. that's a beautiful throw. 30 yards to the touchdown. redskins take the lead with 1:30 remaining. they left eli a little too much time. check this out. first play for the giants on the ensuing drive there. manning connected with the speedster, victor cruz. just right up the seam. i'm faster than everyone else on the field. patterson, new jersey, in the building. 77 yards. giants overcome rg3. get a home win, 27-23. a big one in the division. they're 5-2. next week they get the cowboys. they got back to.500 with a win over the panthers. jets in foxborough taking on the patriots. just over 2:00 left in the

fourth quarter. score tied at 27-27. devin mccord dionne the kick return. fumbles the football. coughs it up. the jets fall on it on the 15-yard line with a golden opportunity to take the lead. they kicked a field goal but the patriots answer back to tie the game at 26-26. all time inspired. o.t. now. pats up a field goal. mark sanchez, backpedaling. he goes down. the ball comes out. patriots fall on it and that's the way the game ends. patriots win 29-26. sole possession of first place in the afc east. jets now 3-4. bucs and saints getting it going. about four hours up the road here in tampa. second quarter, bucs up a touchdown. drew brees puts one up. joseph morgan makes an acrobatic effort. dives into the end zone for the touchdown. his knee never hit the ground. he flips a defender over. keeps going in for the score.

tied at 21-21. fourth quarter, bucs down a touchdown. fourth and goal from the nine. looks like the game-winning tie, right? game-tieing score. they call for an illegal touching penalty. he was shoved out of bounds by the defender. the first person to touch the ball when he came back in. you can't do that. game ends on a penalty. saints pull out the win 35-28. the texans looking good against the ravens facing off a couple of afc heavy weights in houston. texans up six. joe flacco, torrey smith, no good. steps in front. takes it down the sideline. 52 yards for the touchdown. second for flacco. they win in a route, 43-13. they move to an afc best 6-1. the ravens now fall to 5-2. little college football. we've got the latest bcs standings released last night. couple of s.e.c. schools up top. alabama and florida occupying one and two and kansas state

leaps up to number three after its blowout win on the road over west virginia. oregon drops to fourth and notre dame rounds out the top five with a huge game for them at oklahoma this weekend. you can shoot me an e-mail as always at "way too early." let me know what you're doing up at this hour. what do you want to see in the debate tonight. coming up in the top of the hour, president obama and mitt romney, one last chance to stare each other down. we have a galaxy of stars here in boca to break it all down and handicap that race. when we come back here, we will huddle around the water cooler and see what snl did with last week's debate. "way too early" coming back to boca.

if we want to improve our schools... ... what should we invest in? maybe new buildings? what about updated equipment? they can help, but recent research shows... ... nothing transforms schools like investing in advanced teacher education. let's build a strong foundation. let's invest in our teachers so they can inspire our students. let's solve this.

the presidential debate will be held over at lynn university. it will help decide the election. this past saturday's football game between florida state and miami might have given us a clue on which way the sunshine state will go in november. if you want to sound smart today tell your friends since 1988, the year florida state has won the florida state/miami game,

florida has gone democrat. follow along with me. if miami wins, florida has gone republican. good news for the president. the seminoles held on for a 33-20 win on saturday. don't you feel smarter for knowing all of that? now for real news. let's huddle up around the water cooler to watch snl take a crack at last week's second presidential debate with a little help mr. a certain hollywood star. >> we have reached our final question of the night. >> i'm waiving. can you see me? can you see me? you can? >> mr. lafka, please. >> libya. >> you know, i'm glad you brought libya up. governor romney wants to

politicize libya. >> i am willing to bet here and now that you have never in your life even once used the phrase terrorist act. >> get the transcript. >> governor, he has, in fact, used the phrase terrorist act. >> candy, no, no, no, no candy, come on. >> i'm afraid he did. >> candy, please. candy. dropping the mic. snl helping the candidates as they prep for tonight's debate. seth myers with a little bit of do's and don't's. >> do speak loudly and clearly. you're in boca raton, florida. their city motto is say it in my good ear.

don't mention killing osama bin laden. they have a short attention span. saying you killed osama bin laden is like saying you won the second season of "american idol." when you smile it looks like you're about to tell your dad it's time to move into a home and remember, you're in boca. also, tv networks don't televise the post debate stage hugs and milling about. it looks like the lights just came on at america's most boring nightclub. >> seth myers on snl on saturday. on the campaign trail, paul ryan talks about his humble roots growing up in janesville, wisconsin. this year the city is preparing an unusual combo to contribute to this local election. local strip club diamond jim isabella queen is offering a free lap dance to everyone who registers to vote. some excitement from the crowd.

in 2008 the club ran the same promotion reportedly registering more than 200 people. one more reason to visit the isabella queen strip joint in janesville, wisconsin. "morning joe" is just moments away. right back to boca. [ male announcer ] do you have the legal protection you need? at legalzoom, we've created a better place to turn for your legal matters. maybe you want to incorporate a business you'd like to start. or protect your family with a will or living trust. legalzoom makes it easy with step-by-step help when completing your personalized document -- or you can even access an attorney to guide you along. with an "a" rating from the better business bureau legalzoom helps you get personalized and affordable legal protection. in most states, a legal plan attorney is available with every personalized document to answer any questions. get started at legalzoom.com today. and now you're protected.

[ femala $100 cream. we were flattered when regenerist beat

flabbergasted when we creamed a $500 cream. for about $30 regenerist micro-sculpting cream hydrates better than over 20 of america's most expensive luxury creams. fantastic. phenomenal. regenerist. ♪ atmix of energies.ve the world needs a broader that's why we're supplying natural gas to generate cleaner electricity... that has around 50% fewer co2 emissions than coal. and it's also why, with our partner in brazil, shell is producing ethanol - a biofuel made from renewable sugarcane. >>a minute, mom! let's broaden the world's energy mix. let's go. but, dad, you've got... [ voice of dennis ] allstate. with accident forgiveness, they guarantee your rates won't go up just because of an accident. smart kid. [ voice of dennis ] indeed. are you in good hands?